Fire In Our Eyes
by Ioio-Chan
Summary: Sasuke sees just how much his brother changed in the years they've been apart- Now, at 15, Sasuke also discovers many things about Itachi and even himself that he had no idea about. The eyes that can't cry, the emotionless facade, the urge to touch and how he gets burnt every time. Also, Madara's secrets come out as well, causing a change of picture. Uchihacest, M for future chaps.
1. Prologue

**Fire in our Eyes**

**~Prologue~**

_-7 years ago-_

All he could see in front of his eyes was death- the unmoving bodies of his parents laying on the floor, one on top of the other, as his older brother was looking at them with shocked and scared eyes. His aniki, who never showed any sort of emotion whatsoever, was looking shocked!

An 8-year old Sasuke Scooted closer to his brother, as he started to cry 'What happened?'. He couldn't quite comprehend the whole situation at hand. He was confused; he could of course realize that his… _their_ parents were gone. He cried bitter tears as he clung desperately to Itachi's sleeve. Yes, he missed his parents already, but it wasn't all that bad. His aniki was there with him.

Through tears, Sasuke could see that Itachi didn't cry like he did. Itachi only stood there, with trembling hands, looking at the collapsed bodies.

"N-nii-san…" Why did their parents die? How _could_ they die, when he could see no blood? Not on their clothes, not on their facer, nor on the ground. The only thing Sasuke could certainly acknowledge were his parents' eyes, wide opened, dead eyes.

"Nii-san, what happened?" Again, Itachi said nothing as he closed his eyes and collapsed on the ground, on his knees, as his shaking hands went to hold Sasuke's.

"Otouto… I… I don't know…" His voice was broken and low, holding a shaking undertone to it.

Sasuke freed his hands from his brother's to touch his mother's cheek. It was still warm. _'How did this happen?'_ He felt strange. _'What's wrong with me?'_ He **was** devastated to see his parents dead, he cried his heart out, but he wasn't really suffering.

"Nii-san?" he looked behind to see Itachi still on his knees, black hair framing his face and covering his eyes as he looked down. "What… do we do now?"

"Call…" his voice cracked and he couldn't say anything else for a moment. Itachi wasn't sad or devastated, he was **shocked**. He couldn't believe his eyes, and his features showed utter shame.

"Who? The police? And what do we tell them? We don't even know what happened here… There's no blood, nothing! Aniki… are you okay?"

"No." Sasuke looked at his mother again, touching her hair gently, whispering a silent 'mom'. He treated this like his parents were only asleep. His 8-year old mind comprehended death, but not the actual consequences, or what it implied.

"Call… Call uncle Madara. He'll know what to do…"

"Why should we seek help from that creep?"

"Just do it." Sasuke had a frown on his face as he took Itachi's cell phone in his hands and called Madara. It wasn't anything new that the younger Uchiha had a strong dislike for Madara. His considered his uncle to be a total mad man. Even his appearance suggested the man wasn't completely sane. At least to Sasuke, the long mane-like hair added to the weird behavior.

Ever since their father introduced Madara to them, he seemed to pay a lot of attention to Itachi, acting too much like a father for Sasuke's liking. Always treating _his_ aniki like China porcelain, and looking down on Sasuke, like he wasn't worth his attention. Why did everybody take so much care of Itachi? Why did everybody ignore HIM? And even with all that, Sasuke loved his aniki more than he loved anybody else. That's the main reason he hated 'uncle' Madara in the first place. Madara was someone his aniki turned to when something was troubling him. But if Itachi said he should call him, he would.

After 20 minutes, the door opened and a tall man entered, gasping as he saw the scene in front of his eyes. Sasuke only mentioned on the phone that 'Itachi-nii told me to call you… We have a problem here, come as fast as you can.' He didn't even look at the bodies; he immediately went to stay by Itachi's side, scanning the 11-year-old boy quickly.

"Itachi-kun, what happened?"

"I… I don't know… I think it was-" Madara signaled Itachi to stop as he went near the bodies and turned them over. _'No blood,' _he noticed. He knew what it was, and he couldn't help but look at the trembling boy next to him in admiration.

"Sasuke, go pack. You're moving in with me. Itachi, you'll only be staying around for one week. You have to leave, do you understand?"

"He's not leaving anywhere!" Sasuke shouted, the sudden death of his parents forgotten in a second.

"It doesn't concern you. Now shut up." Another thing about Madara that annoyed Sasuke to no end was his imposing personality. Even when Sasuke was decided not to listen to what the man said, when Madara simply raised his voice the tiniest bit, he found himself obeying. Just like now. He wanted to shout at the elder so badly, and ask him why Itachi had to leave. Ask him what happened to Itachi that he was so shaken by the death of their parents. It was a well-known fact that his older brother never cared too much about them.

But it was probably accumulated stress, Sasuke thought. _'Shisui just died as well'_. Only one month ago. And it was Itachi's fault. Nobody accused him, but Itachi was under the impression that he was the one who killed Shisui, because he wasn't able to help. Itachi said that the moment he saw Shisui drown, he panicked, and couldn't move a finger. Again, Sasuke didn't care in the least about the now dead cousin; he hated Shisui because he was Itachi's best friend and always wanted to spend time with him. But to Itachi, it was like the world crushed beneath his feet. Ever since Shisui's death, Itachi's been acting weird, pushing everyone away and isolating himself. The only person he talked to was… Madara.

"Until when?" His aniki's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Until we're sure the history doesn't repeat itself"

Sasuke didn't understand a thing they were saying. How could he? There was not something his ears were supposed to hear, he could at least understand that.  
He really felt useless at the moment being. He didn't get why Itachi had to leave. He wanted to punch Madara for even suggesting that his brother should leave. Wasn't it enough that he lost his parents, now he was about to lose his brother as well? If there was any God up there, then he hated Sasuke with a passion.

If Itachi left, then Sasuke would end up staying with Madara, whom he disliked greatly. And this entire situation confused him a lot. One thing that added to him confusion was the lack of hurt he felt. Why? This wasn't normal, he was sure of it. Any other kid he knew would have already fainted from crying and done stupid, reckless thing as well. But he was okay with his reaction, somehow. Itachi didn't look too suffering either, and Sasuke always wanted to copy his brother in everything.

Itachi didn't look scared and ashamed with himself anymore. He was simply standing on his knees, looking at Madara blankly and blinking every now and then. Sasuke dried his tears and came closer to his brother, embracing him from the back.

"Nii-san, don't go! I don't want you to leave me…"

"Otouto, I'm sorry"

"Don't say that! If you don't leave, you won't have anything to feel sorry about!

"I'm sorry…"

That was all he ever said. _One week later, he was gone._

The doctors didn't clear the fog about Mikoto and Fugaku's deaths. It was only revealed that they both suffered some severe brain damage, and it was a disease of some type. Bottom line: it was a natural death.

At the moment the doctors announced that, Sasuke could clearly see the relief on Madara's face. He already thought the diagnostic to be half-assed, but when he saw his uncle's face, he began to wonder whether…_ Madara killed them?_ But how could that be possible? There was no blood? And all the forensics were negative.

That night, it seemed like Itachi had an idea of what happened. Of course it had to be MADARA to try and keep him as far away as possible from Itachi during that week! He didn't get to talk to his aniki _once_! 2 months passed, and he missed his brother terribly. He's been repeatedly asking his 'uncle' about Itachi's location, but the only answer he got was 'abroad'. He couldn't even send him a letter!

All the days passed without any major events. Every day, Sasuke woke up and had to put up with Madara, who always had something to criticize him about. His hatred grew when Madara went away from home for ONE month to visit Itachi, without taking him as well.

It's been 7 years now, since he's last seen his brother…

* * *

**A/N: **So, here is another story from me, and if you've been reading my other one, don't worry, it's not dead!:) I hope you'll all like this one, it started off as a brainstorm idea, and I decided to go on with it, and I personally like how it turned out. I hope you'll also stay with me for the further chapters, but until then, **please review,** so I know what you think about this story- is it a good idea, are you curious to find out more?:) Okay, that's it from me!

Kisses, Ioio :*


	2. Not What I Expected

**Fire in our Eyes**

**A/N:** So, while writing for 'Things I'll Always Remember', doing homework and having a busy life in general, I managed to write the first chapter for Fire in Our Eyes, and I hope you'll all like it:) I have to thank all of you guys for the follows and favorites, and special thanks go to Jakline-chan and Rosebunse for also reviewing! thank you very much for taking your time to read and comment my story! I hope you also enjoy this first chapter!

**~Not What I Expected~**

**~Sasuke~**

It's 8:30 AM, and I'm getting ready to go and face my wonderful uncle. Tomorrow, school starts again, and I'm a freshman. Just another 4 years of straight A's and learning. However, I'm unusually happy and jumpy lately- Itachi's coming back home today!

I looked into the mirror and frowned. At 15, I'm a pretty scrawny guy. I'm not very tall, but I'm slim. My hair is just as it used to be when I was a kid, although my face seems to be a bit more angular. I wonder if Itachi would recognize me if he saw me on the street… Or, would I recognize _him_? He was 11 when I last saw him, and now he's 18. Geez, major already!

What if he changed a lot? I wonder if he still has long hair, if he still can't sleep well at night, if he still has those lines running down his cheeks, if Itachi still… cares about me. I missed being close to him even before our parents' death. He was and will always be my best friend, my confident, and… my brother. I was (am?) pretty attached to him, if I come to think about it. Only 3 more hours, and he'll be here! Now only if stupid Madara would let me have some time alone with him!

"_Sasuke, get you ass downstairs! Breakfast's ready!"_ I heard Madara shout from the kitchen. Well, even _he_ had some good parts. He cooked, washed dishes, did the laundry, drove me to school, didn't _ever_ beat me… As much as I hated to admit it, Madara was a good 'parent'. Much better than my own (deceased) father, anyway.

He never had me do something I said I didn't want to do, he allowed me to go wherever I wanted and bought me all the stuff I asked for. If only he would be less of a stuck-up, I could say I like him. But no, he took every occasion he could get to make fun of me, mock me or play tricks. And when I fucked something up, he'd ignore me for 2 weeks, until I got bored of the silent treatment and actually apologized.

When I asked him why he was baring with my wishes all the times, he said he wanted me to be happy, but I always heard him mutter '_I can't handle a second Itachi'_. I wonder what he meant, but then I thought how our father always denied Itachi any form of entertainment and always made him do things he didn't necessarily enjoy doing, so that's probably what he meant.

"I'm coming right away!" I shouted back at him, with a smile on my face. Despite my suspicions about Madara's involvement in my parents' deaths, I've grown to accept him somehow. Yes, I usually play the rebel teen and don't listen to what he says, sometimes just to test his patience, but if he were to leave, I'd probably miss him. I guess it's normal seeing as I've lived with the guy for 7 years.

I went to the kitchen after admiring my outfit. In my opinion, I looked great. And no, I don't usually pay much attention to the way I dress or the way my hair looks, but damn, I want to make a good impression to Itachi. I had my usual black jeans with a simple blue belt, a dark blue T-shirt with a 'New Generation' sign and a checkered blazer thing. I took care that my naturally spiked hair looked nice, and that was it.

I almost laughed when I realized I resembled a girl who just got a date with her crush. Why do I care so much to impress my brother? Oh, whatever.

When I entered the kitchen, I could smell a nice pudding. Once again, I was ready to clap my hands at Madara. He was never one to simply give me toast for breakfast; he wanted to brag about how many things he could cook. Well, if I had to describe Madara in 3 words, they would be arrogant, proud and bragging.

I saw him over the sink, washing some dishes. He was dressed in a black suit, the funeral-party-cocktail-business suit. That's _his_ version. My version for it was the 'I-don't-give-a-fuck' suit. He usually takes that suit if he couldn't care less if people like how he's dressed, or he simply doesn't have any ideas of combinations between clothes. Really, I expected him to be at least a bit more enthusiast about Itachi's return.

"What's with the 'I-don't-give-a-fuck' suit? I thought you were happy Itachi's coming back." I grinned at him.

"I am," he said, turning so I could see his face now. "I just didn't know what to wear, and anyway, Itachi doesn't know this is my funeral-party-cocktail-business suit, so I don't mind wearing it."

His hair intrigued me as usual. It had so much volume! And it was so long! How could he wash it? And unlike Itachi, Madara never tied it. He said it was part of his personal charm, and I know he was right, even if I had a hard time admitting it at first. It was true: Madara _was_ a looker. I can't believe how he isn't married yet, with all the women jumping on him from everywhere. Unfortunately, it seems to rather be a 'Uchiha charm', since I've got my own herd of fangirls, that always get on my nerves.

"Oh, and Sasuke… are you going on a date afterwards by any chance? You smell like a whore." _Why, thanks, UNCLE!_

"No, I'm not. I thought I should smell good, since Itachi's coming."

"You overdid it. And you shouldn't even try to impress your brother. Trust me, nothing impresses him. I've tried everything…" I frowned; he's never told me anything about Itachi before, what's gotten into him?

"What do you mean… you tried everything?"

"I tried to get the slightest reaction out of him. Anger, surprise, happiness, damn even arousal. Nothing worked. He's not how you knew him. He's a very… silent person right now. He's pretty flat and uninterested in things teenagers his age would be."

"And you're telling me this because…?"

"I was just warning you. I know you're always attention-starved and enjoy being in the spotlight. It's in the Uchiha blood to be proud and a little of a show-off. But your brother is the exception to the rule, I guess. Nothing's usual about him, and I doubt he would pay much attention to you. He barely listens to _me_."

"I'm his Otouto, he always pays attention to me! And if he doesn't, I'll make him!"

"Good luck with that…" he sighed as I sat at the table and started devouring my pudding. It was strawberry-flavored and so far I loved it. I actually wondered why he didn't eat with me, but I didn't question him. I took my iPod and plugged my earphones. I was nervous, and some music would certainly calm me. Every time I looked at my iPod, I felt like hugging Madara, but restrained from doing so. The guy was really too good to me sometimes.

"Which room's gonna be Itachi's?"

The house had two spare rooms. One was Izuna's, who was Madara's lost brother. He never entered that room, although he hadn't prohibited me from entering it. He was really sentimental when it came to Izuna. I never knew what happened that Izuna disappeared, Madara never told me. He only said that the room used to be his and that all the things in there were just like Izuna left them. He also added that I could go in, as long as I didn't move anything from its place.

Actually, I liked the room. It was **huge**. It had a queen-sized bed, lots of pillows, fluffy carpets and photos. I loved the photos. I think they were the only photos where I could see Madara radiating with happiness. They must've been close.

The other empty room was some sort of guest room, but it had a door, which communicated with Izuna's room. Madara said it was his old room, and I think he moved from it especially because it was too close to Izuna's… just sayin'. I never thought Madara to be a sentimental, but this was his weak spot.

"My old room, most probably. I doubt you'd want to share yours," he answered flatly while sipping on his coffee. I wished I could get more reaction out of him, honestly.

"My room is too small for 2 persons. Besides, yours is better. I always thought it looked like no one ever lived in it, and you said you didn't move things from their places, except clothes and sanitary. Did you _really_ live in there before?"

"I did, but barely, I must admit."

"I mean, even Izuna's room looks livelier! But, wait… if you didn't stay in there all the times, then… where did you stay?" he looked at me with a strange glint in his eyes and answered curtly.

"Business trips, hotels… I rarely came home"

Somehow, I didn't believe him. Yes, Madara was the CEO of a huge company, but especially because of that, he could have someone else travel in his place. And Izuna disappeared when he was 16, so Madara was 18 something- he wasn't working at that time, I suppose. Well, I'll ask Itachi once he comes back. If there is anyone who knows things about Madara, then it should be Itachi.

"When do we leave? We gotta go to the airport before Itachi's plane lands, at 10!"

"Of course… We're leaving at 9; it's more then enough time. We've gotta go shopping afterwards, I doubt Itachi has any notebooks with him, and school's starting tomorrow."

"Why couldn't he come at least one week before school started? I don't have enough time to talk to him and get to know him once again!"

"You'll have more than enough time to get to know him after you come back from school, trust me. Or even during school. You have plenty of classes together."

"Did he go to school… there? Where is he coming from, anyway? You've never told me where you sent him? Can I know now?"

"Jeju Island. And no, he didn't go to school there, he learned everything on his own."

"Where on earth is Jeju?"

"South Korea. It's a pretty isolated place, you know Itachi was never too social." Well, nor am I!

"I thought you would've sent him to China, honestly. Never mind, he's coming back home, and that's all that matters! Do you think I'll recognize him?" He looked at his coffee, then went to a drawer and took out a photo. It was an old one, with both Itachi and me. He looked at it for some time, and then put it back.

"He's changed, but you'll no doubt recognize him. He's a lot taller now. But he still has long hair and pretty much the same face. You two don't look so much alike as you used to. But you're both slim. Only, Itachi is… some other type of slim. He has a strange body, you'll see what I'm talking about."

I was really curious of what he meant with 'strange body'…

I finished my pudding and went to the parking lot at Madara's car, a black Honda. I loved this car; it's very 'fast and furious'.  
After 10 minutes, Madara still wasn't out! I started shouting from where I was, since the kitchen window was facing the driveway.

"Madara, move your ass down here at once!"

He shouted back a _"Can you be any louder than that? I'm coming right away, have a little patience!"_

I was ready to shout louder than earlier, just to 'prove' him that I can be even louder, but decided against it. After all, we have neighbors that still want to sleep. It's only 9:05AM, and Madara said we'd go buy some new sheets for the bed and some new curtains, probably some food as well, until it was 9:45, when we'd head to the airport. After that, we'd drive home to drop Itachi's bags and go to the supply store for notebooks, pens, and Madara also mentioned a cell phone.

He came shortly after, carrying a book with him.

"What's with the book? You _rarely_ read."

"It's for your brother- he'll like it."

"I bet he'd rather have some fun."

"He _rarely_ has fun."

He unlocked the car doors and we got in. I connected my iPod to the car's radio and put on a Disturbed song. I could see Madara frowning. I knew he didn't like the music I was listening to, but I really couldn't care less.

* * *

"Is the plane here yet?" I asked anxiously.

"Yes, it is. Just wait 10 minutes and he'll be here."

"I wish I had someone to share my joy with…" I sighed. I really wished I had some friends here with me… Like Shikamaru, or Gaara. They would have the patience to hear me ramble and not get too bored.

"What, you want a girlfriend? Get yourself one, then." He smiled at me.

"That's not what I meant. I only wished I had my friends here with me. I'll _never_ have a girlfriend."

"Why not? I already know about your fan club, just choose one girl. Looking at Itachi, I know he'll never have one, at least you!"

"When he was here, he had his own fan club, why would you say that? And, no, I'll never have a girlfriend. Girls annoy me to no end. You should be happy, Madara. This way, you won't have to worry about any girl going to '16 and pregnant' because of me."

"Oh, joy. And Itachi still has a fan club over there, but he's just not interested. At first I thought he was gay. But I guess he's not- he's simply not interested in any gender whatsoever. It's like he only lives to breathe and read books. Knowing you, you'll get bored of him really fast."

"You don't know me as well as you think you do, stop claiming that you know me like the back of your hand!"

"I was just saying. I know you get easily bored, and I doubt that your brother will keep you entertained. On the other hand, you like commanding people, and Itachi never complains, no matter what you ask him to do."

"He's my _brother_, not my personal butler or slave. I wouldn't care if he was lazy, stupid, stinky or gay, he's still my brother and I miss him! I can't wait to have him back!"

Madara didn't say anything else. He just shrugged and looked at the glass door, where people already started getting out, families shouted and cried tears of joy. Well, maybe Itachi is apathetic and uncaring, but I still hope he will be happy to see me, even if he doesn't show it.

5 minutes passed and it seemed like less and less people were coming out of that gate. Where was he? After another minute, the flow of people stopped. Completely stopped. _Where is he? What if something happened?_ Madara didn't get a chance to answer as the gate opened once more and someone got out.

I stared at him with wide eyes and I bet my mouth also hung open. Yes, I did recognize him, he hasn't changed that much, yet he was so different. His eyes were so beautiful, as always, but they seemed duller, and the lines on his cheeks were even longer. He was dressed in a dark blue T-shirt and black jeans, carrying a bag on his left shoulder. His raven hair now almost reached his waist, some strands still framed his face. I guess I really missed him if I'm ogling so much. He saw me and gave me a small smile. I knew he wouldn't ignore me!

"Itachi!" I shouted, unable to contain my enthusiasm anymore. "What took you so long?"

He didn't answer until he got closer to us. I immediately hugged him as Madara took his bag. He smelled good, a fresh scent I remembered from childhood. He _was_ taller than me but not by much… okay, actually he was a good 10 cm taller than me, I guess.

"_I wanted to avoid the crowd,_" he whispered softly in my ear. It made my whole body shiver, for some unknown reason.

"Why did you do that?" I asked him as I broke the hug. He looked at me with a tired gaze and didn't answer. He moved to face Madara, who looked absolutely dumbstruck.

"Itachi, are you okay?" he asked with a concerned tone.

"Why wouldn't he be?"

"You don't get it… Itachi… for 7 years, he hasn't touched anyone! When I tried to just take his hand, he wouldn't let me!"

"I told you! We're brothers, I'm the exception to all of his rules! Right, nii-san?"

Itachi didn't answer, he simply went to Madara and hugged him as well, saying a low "I missed home."

As he was embracing Madara, I could see what dear 'uncle' meant when he said Itachi had a 'strange body'. To me, it wasn't strange, just oddly feminine. The grace he was moving with didn't help the issue much, either. Oh well, I don't care how he looks like as long as he's back. I was about to laugh at Madara's shocked expression, like the Grim Reaper was embracing him just now.

"Hey, you should be bonding with _me_," I said, also hugging him from behind, "not HIM! I feel abandoned already!" I heard Madara chuckle, now out of his shock, as he patted my head.

"Here is the Uchiha sandwich, ne? Itachi, let's go." We both backed away from him to see that he was completely unmoving. I went to ask him what was wrong, but he turned to face me before I got the occasion.

"Sasuke…" His voice was changed… it was now deep and seemed to be laced in silk. He put his hand around my wrist and I immediately flinched away. It felt almost as if he'd burnt me. I feel strange for some reason. And now I feel awkward too for flinching like that when he only wanted to grab my wrist.

"Sorry," I muttered, embarrassed. I looked up to see him watching me with an understanding gaze.

He looked back and saw Madara moving towards the exit door, then took my wrist again and started walking in the same direction. This time, his touch was only warm, and soon I found myself walking in front of him, at a much faster pace. When we reached the car, I was panting from the running and dragging Itachi after me. When I looked over my shoulder, Itachi seemed like he didn't even walk, not run! No ragged breath, no red face or sweat. He looked exactly the same. I couldn't help but stare at his pale skin. I took his hand in mine and tried my make scratches on his wrist with my nails.

"What are you doing?" Again that low, whispered voice. I didn't answer, I just continued scratching until I saw the skin reddening. _That's_ what I wanted to see! All this time, and seeing the slightly inflamed skin, I wonder how he kept his hand still and didn't complain about me hurting him.

I was completely fascinated of how fast his skin went back to its pale color. I just let go of his hand, whispering a quiet '_you're weird'_. I guess he heard me, because when I looked up, I could see amusement in his eyes, even though he wasn't smiling.

"Boys, get in the car!" I glared at Madara. He always had to ruin everything. I saw Itachi get in the back seats, and even though I preferred being in the front with Madara, I sat next to him.

The first 10 minutes of the road were plain boring. Itachi started reading the book Madara brought for him, not once looking at me. I felt really strange knowing that I was gawking at him so intensely, yet he didn't feel the need to check me out at all. Every time I said something, he only nodded, and I could bet my life that he wasn't stealing glances either.

When we got home, Madara suggested that, since I want to spend more time with Itachi, he should go to the stationery store on his own and leave us alone. After he left, I showed Itachi to his room, and he seemed to smile.

"He gave me his old room?" he asked me, looking around.

"Yes, how did you know? You've been here before?" He nodded and got out of the room, entering Izuna's. I wanted to tell him not to touch anything, but he probably already knows that.

"Itachi… did you know about… Izuna? Like in Madara's disappeared brother?"

"Of course. This is his room, after all. _Their_ room."

"Their? Did Izuna live with his girlfriend, or what?" Madara never mentioned anything about his brother sharing the room with someone. It would explain the queen-sized bed, though.

I saw Itachi smile lightly, adding, "You could say so."

"_You could say so?_" I repeated in an annoying voice. "Did he, or did he not? Whom was he sharing the room with?"

"Ask Madara…" he answered me. I heard him chuckle to himself and I was curious about what he found so funny. But anyway, what he just told me confirmed my theory. Itachi knew a lot of things about Madara that I didn't.

"You seem to know Madara pretty well, nii-san. How about you tell me things I don't know about him?" I looked up at him with pleading eyes, as he sat on Izuna's bed. He ignored me for some time, until he finally nodded after signaling for me to come sit with him. I gladly complied; if only I wasn't 15, so we could cuddle like in the good old days. We were too old for that now…

"So, why does Madara have long hair? Even _he_ said it was annoying sometimes."

"Izuna liked it that way." Which again proves my theory about Madara having a weak spot for Izuna right! Just like Itachi has a weak spot for me! I can see on his face that he isn't totally pleased with answering my questions, but he's always done what I asked him. He hasn't changed that much in 7 years, after all!

"How old is he? He didn't want to tell me, and he doesn't look old, but you know…"

"He's 35." I _knew_ he was young! Well, not all that young, but he's nowhere near old either. The guy looked even younger then he was. So, he got our custody when he was 28? Cool.

"How did Izuna disappear?" He suddenly stiffened, but only for a second. If I didn't know him, I probably wouldn't have noticed. He didn't answer for a good 5 minutes, when he decided to speak.

"I don't know the details…" _Liar_. He didn't even try not to make it sound like a big fat lie. He was silently communicating me that he won't answer the question, even if it was painfully obvious that he knew the answer to it.

"Fine, don't tell me! I thought we were being sincere with each other!" I pouted at him. I knew it was not going to work, but it would at least make him feel guilty. "Then, why did Madara send you to Jeju?"

"I can't tell you yet. But part of the reason was to keep me as far away from town as possible." His eyes were telling me that I should better know what he was talking about, so he didn't have to voice it out loud. I wanted to laugh; we both knew that I was the one affected by our parents' deaths more than he was. Besides, that doesn't explain why he had to stay away from ME for 7 damn years!

"Itachi…" he wasn't looking at me. He was lying on the bed with his eyes fixated on the white ceiling. "Please look at me, nii-san" He did turn to look at me, and this time, I could clearly see that he wasn't looking at me like he used to do when we were kids. No more love, no more care. Not even at the airport, contrasting to his caring voice, his eyes were blank. And I was mistaken… not once did he look me _in_ the eyes. He was always looking somewhere at my forehead, not once dropping his gaze lower.

"Why won't you look into my eyes?" I asked him silently. I tried my best to sound natural, but couldn't help the feeling that while he was one arm away, he's actually even further.

He wasn't relaxed in my presence… At least not like he used to be. "There's something wrong with you… What happened, nii-san?"

"I don't know." Not again… _I don't know._ Images were playing in my head like crazy. Images of _him_, sitting on his knees next to our parents' bodies, whispering those damned words again and again, with a broken, shattered voice. All this mess started with _I don't know_! Why did he have to say them?

"Don't! Don't you ever say that you don't know once again!" I shouted at him. "I hate it when you say that! It makes me cry when you say that! If you don't know, then don't say anything at all!"

"Why?"

"Because every time you say it, I see _that night_. I see you on your knees, I see all that hell! All you kept repeating was 'I don't know'! You have no idea how many nights I've dreamed this same thing, over and over again! In just one night, I felt like I've lost everything! You were gone! You looked so miserable when you looked at them, when you looked at _me!_"

It was the first time in 7 years I allowed myself to admit how I've felt that night. To hell with all the happiness that my aniki was back… I wanted him to calm me, to help me understand that night that happened so fast! I desperately wanted to be held, and told that I don't need to worry about anything.

Once again, I felt broken on the inside, and there was no one to glue the pieces back together. I looked at him once more, to see his head hung low. When he lifted it, I could see his eyes, looking as _dead_ as they did until now. No tears, no sorrow, just death.

"Why don't you cry? I would've felt so much better if you just cried with me! Don't you feel any pain? Have you become a stone?"

"I cannot cry," he whispered, and his voice sent shivers down my spine. Why? Ever since he's came back, he made me feel strange, and that deep and low voice of his made me shiver every time he spoke. When he touched me, it burned, when he walked, it hypnotized me. He made me say things I didn't even want to admit to myself!

"Sasuke, I can't cry… Pain, sorrow, happiness, despair, _nothing _can make me cry."

"How can you say that? Everybody cries! If I were to die right now in front of you, you wouldn't cry?"

"I wouldn't. I'd die on the inside, but I wouldn't cry. I'm different. This is my fate, to never shed tears…"

"Fate? What are talking about?"

"It's the fate of a cursed heaven, of a blessed hell. I can't show emotion, I can only feel it."

"Then you're not human! I wanted you to _help_ me understand, not to confuse me even further! Now I really think you also died on that day, and you're only a walking corpse now! And I was even happy that you returned!" I turned my back to him and returned storming to my room, slamming the door behind me. Maybe Madara was right… It was maybe better without him.

But, Itachi is the only one who seems to be able to provoke me like that. For 7 years I've been yearning to see him return to me! I wanted to be close to him, yet I kept myself far, far away, out of reach.

After all, it's ME the one who started yelling at him! It's ME the one who wanted to know everything, even when he told me 'it's not time' yet. I should've given him time to… prepare what he wanted to say to me.

But when I saw him looking so dead, I just wanted to knock some life into him. To make him _feel_. It didn't matter if it was pain, love or anything else. I just wanted to see some emotion play into those black orbs of his! Because it _has_ been there. I've seen it! I thought Itachi would be just like he used to… But this… To be so curious to explore this maze he currently is… it's not what I expected.

* * *

**A/N: **Here, I hope you liked it! The next chapter will be from Itachi's POV. I'll be alternating the perspectives, one chapter will be ~Sasuke~, the other will be ~Itachi~ and so on:) Okay, until next chapter, **please review**, and you can tell me what you think I could improve on!

Kisses, Ioio:*


	3. Pictures of the Soul

**-Fire in our Eyes-**

**Pictures of the soul**

**A/N: **Finally, I finished it! I was so busy writing for Things I'll Always Remember that I almost forgot I also have this story to update:) Thank you very-very much to my reviewers, **Jakline-chan, Noelleisparadise **and **Niu**, you made my day! I hope you'll like this chapter as well!

**-Itachi-**

It was already 12PM when Madara came back home, carrying a bag full of notebooks and pens, pencils, sharpies. _Sasuke will be happy to see them_. I went to the kitchen with slow steps, greeting Madara as I entered the room. He smiled, and then frowned.

"You two already started having arguments?" he asked me with a scowl. I didn't answer; it was too obvious that he wasn't actually _asking_ me. He was merely stating a fact. "I think he expected you to be a little more enthusiast about seeing him. Sasuke always wanted to be in the spotlight of the people he cared about. I don't know how he'll learn to cope with your indifference."

"I'm not being indifferent." I said calmly. He should know better than tell me that, in the end. Out of all the people, he's the one who knows me best, and he knows that I simply can't show my feelings, in any kind of situation. These eyes won't show anything; they're just hollow.

"You certainly aren't good with emotional display then," he winked at me, although his voice sounded serious.

"I wonder why's that. And I believe that my emotional display towards Sasuke is further damaged by the fact I can't even look him in the eyes, don't you think?"

"I thought you've learnt how to control it, that's why I brought you back! I don't want to see the history repeat itself! I don't wish for Sasuke to end up like Izuna!"

"I know you don't…" I sighed, thinking. It was different from what happened to them. Madara awakened these eyes at 18, a lot later than me, at 11. He didn't even know fully well what was going on when the accident happened. '_Tsukuyomi_- _a powerful eye technique that destroys the emotions displayed by eye-contact, and creates an inner world, or an alternate universe that you can only show a normal human once. It has the capacity to shut down the nervous system completely of the person who gets caught in it. But at least they know what's in your soul before they die,' _was Madara's exact explanation of the phenomenon.

That's what happened to both Izuna and my parents: an accident caused by anger. When mother started blaming me of having the emotions of a stone, and Fugaku said I want to defy him. I was 11, I snapped. And for a second, even I wasn't aware whether it was my fault or not. I was unaware of the consequences, and the price was high.

All those 7 years I've been mastering this Tsukuyomi, also discovering that I could mold fire and water. It sounds impossible. And I'm not a dragon from a Chinese fairy tale, nor am I the little mermaid. I can't look at something and set it on fire, and I can't control weather. But I can extinguish fire and also mold it's shape, even work with my own body heat from low to high. _I bet if Sasuke had this sort of possibility, he'd pretend to be sick with fever all the time._

With water it's a lot more interesting. But these powers have been my downfall. They took me away from my family, from Sasuke. _Damn eyes!_ Missing him so much, yet giving the impression I couldn't care less if I remained in Jeju for the rest of my life. Even if I wished to cry right now, I wouldn't be able to. I'm not granted with tears, unfortunately.

"Itachi?"

"Yes."

"I wanted to tell you something." I lifted my gaze to see Madara properly. "Sasuke always wanted to know what exactly happened to Izuna, and also various things from my youth. Even the reason why you were always with me before you left to Jeju. Don't tell him yet, he wouldn't understand."

"Madara… Have you ever considered that Sasuke could also develop these eyes?" I asked without even thinking. There was no need to tell him I wouldn't say a thing to Sasuke. There is something else I wanted to discuss with him right now.

"It might happen. I mean, it's possible, but he should have shown some signs already. You're brothers, it's supposed that if he ever develops it, he'd be around the same age you were. But he's 15 already, and you were 11…"

"I wish he would have it," I whispered back to Madara. He smiled; he knew what I meant. I wished he would have it, so he would be immune to my Tsukuyomi. Just like Madara is.

Being into Madara's mind felt like watching an old movie. Everything seems old, and nothing of the present interests him in a special way. Molding our inner worlds, I can definitely state that we'd make a complete family portrait. He'd be the past, and I'd be the present and future. Too bad things like these only work in theory. Also, too bad Madara doesn't actually have a memory of the past. It solely includes one person-Izuna- surrounded by his guilt and sorrow.

"I miss Izuna," he whispered to me. Somehow, Madara has learnt to display his feelings by the tone of his voice, if the eyes were unavailable. Sadly, in my case, I'm not too fond of talking, or giving my voice different nuances.

"Then go see him…"

"He's dead"

"He's not."

I could see his eyes widen to the size of dinner plates, as he stared at me in disbelief. Of course, he's told me numerous times how Izuna 'died', and how they were extremely close, sharing Izuna's room, but the fact remains that his brother _wasn't_ dead. I knew that for sure. You have to know the feeling of having killed a relative in order to be able to make the difference: it can't be explained.

"How do you even know that?" he almost shouted at me. It was the first time I saw him other than sarcastic or serious. It was pretty much visible that it irked him to find out I can read him so easily, even when he didn't say a thing about the matter. But in the end, he doesn't need to tell me something like this…

"Silence speaks louder than words. I could read it in your red eyes."

"Have I ever told you how much I hate that intuition of yours? But you've always been special, it's not all that surprising if I come to think about it."

I gave him a small nod and took the bag with the stationery he's bought for Sasuke and me. I picked the basic notebooks, one pen and one pencil; I never needed more than that, and Sasuke always liked having the new and sophisticated stuff anyway.

"Well, we should have lunch. Do you wanna help me cook?" he asked me with a sly grin, almost as if he was suggesting my inability to cook something edible. I don't blame him for thinking that, though; he's never once in his life seen me cook.

"Sure, let's do it…"

* * *

**10PM**

"I'm going to sleep. G'night both." Sasuke announced in a tired voice as he went to his room upstairs, with Madara. They've both been very quiet after eating lunch, and we silently decided to eat dinner separately, or in my case, not at all. The quiet atmosphere didn't bother me, I was used to it, but Sasuke was never the quiet type; every time I looked at him, he'd look away and close his eyes. He ate as fast as he could, and then ran to his room. From 1PM to 9, he didn't come out. And now, 1 hour after his leave, I hear his footsteps in front of my door, and I open it for him. He used to do this a lot when we were children, he came in front of my room but he was afraid to knock.

_I opened the door only to see him there, in a lotus position, staring at the ground and looking up when he heard the door open. Just when I wanted to ask him why he was there, he rose from the ground and entered my room. I waited calmly to see what he was going to do next. He simply sat on my bed, looking at his feet. I didn't ask anything. It's not the first time he comes to my room just to look around, or be with me. And his presence didn't bother me, so I didn't mind. _

_I picked up my book and started reading, not curious enough to steal a glance at him from time to time. I knew he'd start talking sooner or later. Probably later, though._

_Even if I wasn't looking, I knew what he was staring at: the books on my nightstand, the ones that I enjoyed re-reading. I know for a fact that Sasuke finds them incredibly boring, but Madara said it's a good thing that I'm reading. So said mom, and dad… he didn't really care as long as I kept on being his straight A student._

"_Aniki?" Oh, there it is. I just nod my head to tell him I'm listening. He already knows that unless we're discussing some serious matter, I'm multi-tasking. "Why are you spending so much time with Madara lately?"_

"_He's a good guy." I saw Sasuke ready to say something along the lines of 'That's not what I asked', so I continued. "He's giving me books, and he's nice to talk to."_

"_You're spending more time with him rather than with me. It's not fair!" he gave me his famous pout, the one that generally granted him everything, from anyone. Except for Madara. He was somehow immune to THE Sasuke pout, and I think I have a fair idea why._

"_Why does it bother you so much? I often offered you to come with me to visit him, didn't I?" He probably doesn't like Madara very much, that's why. _

"_I don't want to share, Aniki. I want to spend time with you, not with you __**and**__ Madara." Straight to the point, as always. But that's not necessarily the best approach. It will guarantee you an honest answer, and that's not always what you want to hear._

"_You're only 8, Sasuke. It's normal that I have more things to talk about with Madara. When you'll get older, I'll spend more time with you. Just wait and see." Even I was a bit surprised by the flatness of my voice sometimes. This is one of those 'times', and it had the same effect as always on Sasuke: he furrowed his brows and exited my room quietly, only adding a quick 'Sorry to be a burden, then.' And I'm sorry to disappoint you, Otouto. Maybe next time…_

Once again, as a reply, I opened my door, and he was indeed there. The only difference would be that he didn't have time to sit down cross-legged this time. I pointed a hand to the inside of my room, inviting him to come. He didn't move an inch. For a few seconds, he simply stared at me. I could feel his questions in the air, and the instinct told me that he was too proud to ask anything. So be it.

I returned to the bed, leaving the door open, and him in the doorway. I wonder if he'll come inside, after all. It would be best if he didn't. Sorry to disappoint you, Sasuke. And now, I'm saying it in advance.

"I thought you'd invite me in," came his soft voice. It was a bit raspier than in my memories, though.

"I did."

"Not verbally. You talk too little, I can't even recreate your voice in my head, like I could in the past."

"I've got nothing in particular to say." It was more than enough that I had to talk a lot when we first saw each other at the airport. My throat still hurts, I usually go days without even muttering a word.

"You should. We haven't seen each other for 7 years, do you really have nothing to say to me? Look, I'm sorry for lashing out at you earlier, but that doesn't give you the right to remain grave-silent!"

"What would you want me to tell you?" He finally moved from the doorstep, closing the door behind him. He really changed in all these years. He's not shy anymore, and he seems to actually get along with Madara. The only thing that remained the same is his curiosity. He's always so curious, always wanting to know more. Somehow, he's caught my interest; just like he always did… before. But unlike him, I don't ask. I observe.

"Still like red and black?" he asked suddenly. I only nodded. I was a bit surprised to see that he'd even use the kindergarten questions in order to get me to talk. And I must admit, he looks funny all concentrated like that. "How tall are you now?"

"1,78." Not very much, if you ask me, but it's not like I mind too much. He seems to be a few centimeters shorter. But he's only 15, he'll still grow.

"I'm 1,72. That's not fair. I always wanted to be taller than you, you know? It's almost like a challenge for me now, to get to 1,80!"

Pause. Maybe he was waiting for me to say something in retort… I didn't.

"Madara said you have a strange body." So I was right about Madara checking me out… "I can see what he meant now." And would you please to share?

"My body's perfectly fine."

"No, it's not! If you're ever curious enough to see what I mean, ask Madara. Even if he hasn't told me, I'm sure we got to the same conclusion. Take care when you're…"

"Yes?" He stopped for a second, and looked down. It was obvious from his posture that he wasn't quite willing to continue what he started saying. Still, he looked at me again and spoke almost inaudibly.

"Take care at school. It's full of assholes there, and… you know, with long hair and… just be careful, okay?" His face was suddenly red, and only then I caught what he was trying to say. I really hoped nobody would comment on that. It's not my choice that I grew up slender like this.

"Sasuke?" He was still looking down, with blushy cheeks, almost as if he was ashamed of letting me know that I'm the most probable target of the queers from his (our?) school.

"Eh, yes? Sorry, I'm being jumpy lately. I don't think very much before talking, ne? I mean, I missed you a fucking whole lot, and now my brain's all mushy, you see? You were gone for so long, and you changed a lot. I'm almost afraid that… I'm not up to your standards anymore."

At that moment, he raised his head and saw my questioning gaze, so he further elaborated. "Madara told me you're probably not gonna spend too much time with me, and that you only sleep and read… nothing else. And when I look at you, I realize that… it's almost like you belong to the silence, surrounded by your books. And I'm kind of intruding here, because I want to have you back, after 7 years. Argh, I'm making no sense here, damn it!"

A frown adorned his face once again, as I was thinking of his words. Did he really feel like that, after only 12 hours with me? He's rushing with conclusions already.

"You're not intruding. I'm not used to talking to people, that's it. I can't go back to my 11-year-old self. Give it some time, you're still not used to being around me."

"And I like it that you're trying to talk to me, but your mere presence makes me nervous. I'm scared that we really have nothing in common anymore, and that we won't be able to talk! Maybe you remember that ever since I was a little kid, I found silence awkward." Yes, I recall that. "And that's why I talk a lot now. Usually, at school, I'm the cool and silent one, but… when it's just the two of us, if I don't talk, then _you_ certainly won't! You're making me ramble like an idiot, for God's sake! I feel retarded."

"If you have no idea what you want to talk to me about, then why did you come to my room?" He bit his lip the moment I got mid-sentence, and then crossed his arms, looking troubled. Sasuke is one interesting kid, that's for sure. If only it weren't so dangerous, I'd look him directly in the eyes. There are so many emotions at once playing in those black orbs, it's fascinating. I could go through hell and heaven, and still not be as expressive as he is. I think the eyes are the only thing I truly envy at Sasuke.

"Well, you see…" he started quietly. I almost forgot I've asked him a question. " You're so different now that I want to re-discover you. You're so silent; you never let anything you think at the surface! I want to know you like I used to when we were kids, to be able to guess your thoughts… You can't possibly imagine how much I miss our childhood."

"It almost sounds like a declaration of love," I commented for myself, when I felt a light punch in my shoulder.

"Don't twist my words, I'm being very serious here! It's Madara's fault I'm being so open, he told me to always say what's on my mind, so don't blame me!" Madara really spoiled him. If I ever talked my mind with father, he'd chop my head off. Although, that makes Sasuke all the more interesting. He's probably the only Uchiha to ever act on impulse, just like that.

I raised my hand and poked him in the forehead. For a moment, I felt like a child again, when Sasuke's only allowed impulse was to play with my hair. I wonder if he tried braiding Madara's like he did with mine.

"You know, Madara regretted telling me to act on impulse. I almost ruined him once. And he couldn't escape once he allowed me to braid his hair. It was fun." Speak of the devil. I can certainly assume Sasuke has a thing for long hair. When I wasn't at home, he'd braid mom's. And she was the only one who honestly didn't mind.

"When are you going to sleep?" he asked out of the blue.

"Around 11, and that would be in half an hour. Why?"

"Oh, I was just asking. I'll leave then. You must be tired after today, right? I don't want to pester you anymore." _I'm sorry to be a burden._ Sounds so familiar to the past...

I didn't have a chance to answer (although I wasn't going to), as he stormed out of my room. I pretended I didn't see his sad eyes, when he closed the door with a loud thud. I pretended I didn't lie about my sleeping hour, when he came inside my room, at midnight. I pretended I didn't feel a thing when he laid glued to me, holding my hand tight. Unfortunately, he doesn't remember that I am the morning person between us two, if his plan was to leave before I woke up, leaving no evidence of ever being here. But I did have a nice sleep. It reminded me of childhood, when we'd always sleep together because he was waking up in the middle of the night, feeling lonely. He's still my otouto, after all these years…

* * *

**A/N: **Sorry for the totally messed up style, I know it's hard to understand what I want to say in some places, but please understand that I got the nastiest cold ever, and it's killing me. I promise the next chapter will be better, okay? But till then, review the content, and not the style, okay?

I love you all, Ioio :*


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